Navigation system including optical and non-optical sensors

Abstract

Systems and methods that utilize optical sensors and non-optical sensors to determine the position and / or orientation of objects. A navigation system includes an optical sensor for receiving optical signals from markers and a non-optical sensor, such as a gyroscope, for generating non-optical data. A navigation computer determines positions and / or orientations of objects based on optical and non-optical data.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 705,804, filed on Sep. 26, 2012, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention relates generally to a navigation system that tracks objects in space by determining changes in the position and / or orientation of such objects over time. More specifically, the present invention relates to navigation systems that utilize optical sensors and non-optical sensors to determine the position and / or orientation of objects.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Navigation systems assist users in precisely locating objects. For instance, navigation systems are used in industrial, aerospace, defense, and medical applications. In the medical field, navigation systems assist surgeons in precisely placing surgical instruments relative to a patient's anatomy.[0004]Surgeries in which navigation systems are used includ...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

One of the limitations on accuracy and speed of optical navigation systems is that the system relies on the line-of-sight between the LEDs and the optical sensors of the camera unit.

When the line-of-sight is broken, the system may not accurately determine the position and / or orientation of the instrument and anatomy being tracked.

As a result, surgeries can encounter many starts and stops.

For instance, during control of robotically assisted cutting, when the line-of-sight is broken, the cutting tool must be disabled until the line-of-sight is regained.

This can cause significant delays and added cost to the procedure.

Another limitation on accuracy occurs when using active LEDs on the trackers.

However, because the LEDs are fired in sequence, there can be a considerable lag between measurements of any one LED.

Furthermore, this approximation does not take into account rotations of the trackers, resulting in further possible errors in position data for the trackers.

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